A Poisoned Heart
by A-Truth
Summary: When Vali wakes up to terrible pain, he seeks help from the first ally he can find. The two soon find themselves on an adventure spanning time itself, in an attempt to cure Vali's pain.
1. The Start of Something Big

Vali cel Tradat woke one morning to terrible back pain. It was unbearable, he could barely bring himself to sit upright. Once he did manage to get up, he struggled to stay that way. Something was clearly wrong, and he would need to do what he hated most- ask for help. Not just to cure his pain, but to do anything as simple as get dressed. He found himself glad he neglected to change into his sleep wear before hitting his pillow the night before.

It took all of his efforts to ease himself off his bed. The pain was excruciating and it seemed to increase with every movement. Vali cursed as he made his way out of the shack he d spent the night in, and hobbled onto the streets of Constantinople. The templar scanned the bustling city before spotting a familiar mask-wearing being by a fruit stand. He grimaced. Shahkulu. Of course the only ally in sight would be an idiot such as Shahkulu. While Vali would have preferred to limp to the other side of the city, the already horrible pain in his back was becoming more pronounced, and it seemed he would have to push aside his animosity in order to find a timely remedy.

He took a good breath and squared his shoulders, not one known to be in need of help. Luckily Shahkulu hadn't seen him yet.

"Renegade." He said it loudly but flatly, making it obvious he wished anyone else could have been nearby. Mirella, Lysistrada, hell, even Seraffo would have been preferable. At least he was a doctor. But Shahkulu didn't turn his way. "Renegade!" He shouted again, louder this time. Finally, the silver mask turned it's face Vali's direction. Vali motioned for him to come closer. Shahkulu hesitated before complying, the grimace almost visable under his mask. It seemed Shahkulu felt the same way about Vali's presence. At least he had gotten his attention. He struggled to maintain his composure as Shahkulu made no hurry of walking closer.

"What do you want, Sentinel?" The irritation was clear in his muffled voice. Vali gave Shahkulu his best glare- or rather, he attempted to. In truth, the expression he wore was somewhere between annoyance and poorly disguised pain.

"I need help," he whispered, his voice as low as his pride would allow. Shahkulu tilted his head, his silver mask having succeeded at blocking Vali s words.

"What? Speak more loudly, Sentinel!"

"I need help!" Vali hissed.

Shahkulu stared in surprise- though it was impossible to tell through his mask. The sentinel asking for help? There must have been something seriously amiss.

"Help? Help for what, exactly?"

"I... I'm injured. Call for a doctor." Vali muttered. Shahkulu looked him over.

"I don't see any blood." Vali didn't know if Shahkulu meant he didn't see Vali's blood, or his target's. Vali glowered up at the taller man. His crippled posture only made him seem shorter, and that made him even less happy about his already unpleasant situation.

"None was spilled, obviously. I was struck by a blunt object, in my back." Vali lied. The night before had been a fruitless tracking endeavour, and save for a torn cape, uneventful. "I was outnumbered, at least twenty of them." It was his already bruised pride that kept him talking, his back cried for him to stop and lay back down. It felt as though he had a knife wedged in his spine. Shahkulu appraised the lie for a moment.

"You look pathetic. Hunched over like an old woman. Where did you stay? Somewhere secluded? Let's discuss this where I won't be seen with you." Vali sneered at him and gestured behind him, to the shack. Shahkulu turned his head upward and started to the shack. Vali turned to follow, but sharp pangs in his back forced him to stop. He had never known such pain.

"Shahkulu, wait." Vali called after him, barely keeping his pain out of his voice. The man stopped and turned on his heels, waiting impatiently for Vali to continue. "I... I need help." The pain from his back was made less only by the pain to his pride.

"You cannot even cross the street?" The disbelief in Shahkulu s voice did nothing to improve Vali s mood.

"Will you help an ally in need or will you not?" Vali no longer had the patience to come up with lies in order to protect his pride- he was about to collapse.

Shahkulu frowned before reluctantly returning to Vali s side and wrapping one of the sentinel s arms over his shoulder. He used his other arm to support Vali as he lead the cursing templar into the run down shack. Once they were within a reasonable distance to the bed, Vali all but flung Shahkulu s arm off of him. He then gingerly eased himself onto the bed, refusing to meet Shahkulu s eyes. There was a momentary silence, which Shahkulu broke.

"What happened to your back? I find it strange that someone as injured as yourself would make it out of such a fight alive."

Vali hesitated before answering. Surely, the truth would only help his treatment. And he would have no bruising or broken skin to support his story. He let out a shallow sigh. Shahkulu would find the truth sooner or later. "I woke up like this, I don't know what brought forth this fate. Old wounds, bad sleeping position... Karma." Shahkulu laughed at him. Vali shot him a stare that could daze a basilisk.

"Karma? I suppose you're going to suggest it was 'voodoo' next? I didn't know you bought into such fancies." Shahkulu laughed again and made himself comfortable on a shoddy chair in the shack.

"I don't know! Just fix it!" Vali spat back, wishing he had opted for crossing the city in search of someone else. "Or get someone who can!" The shout made a dart of pain spike up his back again, and he did everything in his power not to whimper. Shahkulu was enjoying this too much. If only he had something to throw at him.

"You misunderstand me, Sentinel. I would not have suspected you to believe such things- that does not mean they are not true." Vali rolled his eyes. Surely he wasn't serious.

"What, someone with a grudge shoved some pins into a doll and gave me a backache? Great revenge. You got me!" Vali cursed under his breath as another pang made him gingerly hold his back with one hand.

"Anyone can access string and pins. The question is, who would want to? Who wants you dead?" Vali couldn't believe how serious he sounded. Did Shahkulu, The Renegade, really believe in voodoo? Vali scoffed at the question.

"Who doesn't?" Surely every Assassin he once called his 'Brother' would want him dead. Many of his Templar associates believed him to be untrustworthy, and they aren't exactly known for mercy.

"Surely there must be someone- or some event that stands out from the rest? Something recent, I presume."

At this Vali paused. He had done nothing unusual in the past while, and it was strange to think it would have taken this long for any of the Assassins to extract such a type of revenge. His eyes widened as a recent incident came to mind, but, surely it couldn t be...

"Does anything come to mind?" Shahkulu asked, noticing the other man s change in demeanor.

"I..." Vali hesitated, not believing something so preposterous could have anything to do with this, "I encountered a strange creature the other night."

Now Shahkulu s interest was peaked, "A strange creature? What strange creature do you speak of?"

"It was akin to a horse, though, there was a horn atop of its head."

The chair fell with a clatter as Shahkulu shot up off of it, "You, what did you do to this being?"

Vali flinched at the sudden movement, inciting another sharp pain in his back. "Calm down, you fool! It was dark and I had yet to eat-"

"You killed and ate it?"

"Do not interrupt me! I may have attempted to, but I did not succeed. The beast was far faster than I could have imagined! I only managed to graze its leg with my blade," Vali chose to not mention the foreboding gaze the strange creature had given him before galloping away.

"I suppose the good news is that it isn't voodoo." Shahkulu said, appauled. Vali looked back up to him with inquiring eyes. "You came close with 'karma', but this isn't your everyday what-goes-around-comes-around. This is much more grave. You see, that beast you encountered marked you for death." Vali gasped.

"Death? Can it be reversed?"

"You must clear your name in the eyes of this creature. Do not fret over finding it again, this beast has created a bond between you that is not easily broken. He will know when you have redeemed yourself. Of course, such creatures tend to have high standards of purity. It will not be an easy task. One, I'm afraid, with a time limit." Shahkulu relayed the information with a deadpan expression. It was clear this was nothing to take lightly. He even seemed concerned.

"What do I have to do, to clear my... uh... What's it called again?"

"Unicorn Karma." Shahkulu shifted uncomfortably at the name, uttering it barely above a whisper. "It varies from one beast to the next, but the task is to purify your soul and clear all regrets. I suggest retracing your life from childhood, in a linear fashion. Then nothing will be overlooked."

Vali sighed. This was not going to be easy.


	2. Childhood

"This feels rediculus," Vali grumbled, more to himself than to Shahkulu. Only minutes had passed, but Shahkulu worked quickly. Charms hung from the doorframe, dull yet colourful threads of cloth and bone. When he had asked, Shahkulu assured him the bones were not human, though Vali still had his doubts about them. Incense burned somewhere in the room, the scent sublte yet distinct. From his bedridden state, he had no choice but to watch Shahkulu darting about the shack, pulling items from within any of his numerous pouches or chinks in his armour.

"It may seem foolish now, but I do not believe you to have more than three days left before the beast's poison spreads far enough to kill you." Shahkulu spoke without facing Vali, engrossed in his task.

"How far does it spread?" Vali asked, fighting the worry from his voice.

"It won't matter, it multiplies in the heart until it can no longer beat. The organ simply fills with poison until it ruptures."

For a moment Vali paused, leaving Shahkulu to work in silence. Only when Shahkulu had seemingly finished, did he speak again.

"So this 'charm' as you call it will supposedly clear my sins?"

Shahkulu shook his head, "Not quite, rather, it is the key to enter your subconscious. We must clear your greatest sins, and this is the only way we can reach your past. The real journey begins once we enter." The armour clad man then removed four shimmering stones from one of his pouches. He placed each stone in a different corner of the room before moving towards the centre of the shack, beckoning for Vali to join him.

Vali grimaced as he eased himself of the relative comfort of his bed. He limped over to where Shahkulu stood, attempting to keep a neutral expression despite his discomfort.

Without a word of warning, Shahkulu plucked a hair off of Vali's head. The sudden movement didn't give Vali any time to fend off the expression of pain on his face.

"What exactly do you think you're doing you idiot!" Vali yelled, and had the man not been in such poor physical condition he most certainly would have accompanied the outburst with a punch to the gut.

Shahkulu didn't say anything as he gingerly set the hair down on the insence tray, letting the tip of the insence singe the hair first. Vali glowered at the taller man and again fought back a pained expression when Shahkulu turned to face him again.

"Ten seconds. It can be dangerous to go alone into your own mind, everything seems real enough that it's easy to overlook the fact that you are not awake. I'm going with you, Sentinal." Before Vali could protest, his new guide grabbed his forearm and the smoke from the insence filled the room- blinding them both and forcing painful coughing fits from Vali. Shahkulu's mask must have filtered the air enough to keep the smoke away from his face. He kept a straight posture and only loosened his grip on Vali when the smoke had cleared.

"What! You can't come into my mind! It's... it's MINE!" Vali coughed between words, outraged at Shahkulu's intrusion. Either Shahkulu failed to hear him or simply didn't care, as he had already stepped away and was looking around. Vali took a moment to clear his lungs and take in his surroundings as well. They were outside, in a small field not far from a house he instantly recognized as his childhood home. Much to his displeasure, Shahkulu was already strutting over to the house. Vali took a careful step, and found he wasn't in pain. He unwittingly smiled at that, and hurried after Shahkulu.

"Wait!" Vali called out, before Shahkulu got too close to his home. He stomped over to him and spun the metal man by the arm to face himself. "I was the son of a noble family, do you really think you can just waltz right into my home!"

Shahkulu shook Vali's hand off of his arm in disgust, "Time is of the essence, sentinel! There is no time for this nonsense, we must find the you of this time immediately." To Vali's annoyance, he returned to his march towards the home.

With a huff, Vali followed after him, "You idiot, can you not listen to me for one-"

"Halt!"

Shahkulu's warning had come too late as Vali had already bumped into the man's back.

"What in god's name are you doing?" Vali growled, rubbing his nose. Running into a fully armoured man was more painful than he'd ever admit.

"Look," Shahkulu said, pointing to a window above. There behind the glass stood a young boy who couldn't have been more than eight. Though he was young, his dark hair and deep hazel eyes with gold swimming streaks of purity made it clear who he was.

Vali gaped at the boy, not knowing how to react. He hadn't seen the two men yet, his small face focused on the sky.

"I... I remember this!" Vali gasped. Shahkulu turned his masked face back to him.

"What were you doing?" He asked sharply. Vali thought back.

"I was... I was imagining if I could ever catch a cloud, what it would feel like." He replied sheepishly. Of course he felt foolish saying it outloud. Shahkulu paused, seeming lost in thought.

"Dreams..." He muttered under his mask.

"What?" But before Vali got his answer, Shahkulu had taken off again, toward the tower that housed the younger Vali. The adult Vali chased after him again, annoyed at his strut in Vali's home. His posture was straighter than the pike he carried.

Shahkulu shoved the door open, sending a surprised servant darting in the other direction. He looked at the three other hallways, then back to Vali.

"Which way?"

Vali took this chance to take the lead, walking briskly towards the right. "Follow me, and quickly! Before the servant summons someone!"

The two hurried through the various stairs and corridors that led to young Vali's room, doing their best to avoid running into anyone. In their haste, they stumbled into many different things, including each other. It was only after Shahkulu had nearly sent a precious vase to its untimely demise that they came across their destination.

"There!" Vali exclaimed, pointing at a closed door. Before he could even object, Shahkulu had shoved his way past him and slammed the door open.

The young Vali turned around at the intrusion, and the shock on his face was evident. Before Shahkulu could even begin to explain himself, the boy screamed with all his might.

"FATHER! FATHER! THERE ARE STRANGE PEOPLE IN THE HOUSE! FATHER!"

Just as Shahkulu was preparing to run for it, something bashed into his helmet, the bang resulting ringing in his ears.

"What were you thinking?" Vali spat, massaging his now bruised knuckles.  
"Well I didn't expect you to have been such a coward as a child!"

"Better a coward than a blithering idiot!"

"What was that?" Shahkulu replied, and though he was quite sure Vali had insulted him, the ringing in his ears (as well as young Vali's continuous shrieking) was making hearing quite difficult.

Vali shut the door behind them and went over to his younger self, kneeling to meet his height.

"Hey, it's okay! Stop screaming!" Vali tried to pacify him, but the screeching continued. Vali thought fast, trying to remember what calmed him as a child. Something came to mind, but... He checked over his shoulder, to find Shahkulu still fixing his helmet.

"Melc, melc codobelc,  
Tu te duci la baltă..."

The boy stopped his shouting when he recognized the Romanian song. Vali continued in a grumpy mutter.

"Åži bei apă caldă."

The younger Vali sniffled and joined in for the second half of the song.

"Tu te duci la Dunăre,  
Åži bei apă tulbure."

Vali sighed with relief that his younger self had been soothed. But his peace was interrupted when he heard a stifled laugh behind him. He turned with a scowl and shot Shahkulu the darkest glare he could muster.

"Was that Romanian?"

"I didn't know Turkish when I was a boy," Vali huffed. "It wouldn't make sense that he would. What do we do now?"

Shahkulu folded his arms, the smile on his face almost visable under his mask. "I didn't know you could sing."

"It's a nursery rhyme!" Vali snapped back. "Can we please just finish up here? Before we traumatize the kid?"

Shahkulu cleared his throat, "If I'm correct, it's here that we are to complete the aspect of dreams."

"The... what?"  
Shahkulu answered Vali's inquisitive look with a dismissive wave of his hand. "The aspect of dreams. It would take too long to fully explain but it is something akin to a trial. One of the many you will have in order to earn forgiveness."

Despite Vali's expression of complete bewilderment, Shahkulu continued, "You remembered this moment as one in which you dreamed. The aspect of dreams is something that usually only exists in childhood. It thrives on naivete and wonder. To be here at this time must mean that this is when you'd lost those things. Maybe a dream of yours- or a few, were shattered at this moment. We have to do what is in our power to keep those things alive. Now, tell me sentinel, did something happen at this time?"

Vali hesitated for a moment. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, there was sudden, loud knocking on the door.

"Vali, what is going on? What were you yelling about?"

The knob turned.


End file.
